Lunch and Learn Sessions (12:30-1:30PM CST, 1:30-2:30PM EST)
Wednesday, 11/19/2025
Title: Understanding and Conducting Dyslexia Evaluations
Join Laurie Peterson, NCED and owner of Diagnostic Learning Services, for an in-depth discussion on best practices for evaluating dyslexia. Laurie will explore the core components of a comprehensive dyslexia evaluation, focusing on finding the “preponderance of evidence” required to identify dyslexia. The webinar will also address common challenges in dyslexia identification, such as the impact of previous interventions or ADHD comorbidity, and offer practical strategies to improve diagnostic accuracy.
Presenter: Laurie Peterson, M.Ed., MA, LPC, NCED 
Founder and Executive Director, Diagnostic Learning Services & eDiagnostic Learning Laurie Peterson is the Founder and Executive Director of Diagnostic Learning Services and
eDiagnostic Learning. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Special Education and a master’s degree in Special Education with an emphasis on Assessment. Early in her career, Laurie
worked in public schools conducting psychoeducational evaluations and collaborating closely with educators to support student success. Her time in the school setting gave her a deep
appreciation for the challenges diagnosticians face in balancing compliance, time, and the individual needs of students. Driven by a desire to provide comprehensive evaluations that capture the full picture of a
learner’s strengths and challenges, Laurie founded Diagnostic Learning Services in 2004. Her practice focuses on identifying learning disabilities, ADHD, and processing disorders in students and adults, as well as helping families understand how to advocate for appropriate accommodations and support. Laurie is also the co-host of the popular podcast Let’s Talk Learning Disabilities and serves on
the Executive Board for the North Texas chapter of Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (CHADD).
Wednesday, 1/7/2026
Title: Driving Instruction in our FIEs with Free CBM & CBA
Discover how to make your Full and Individual Evaluations (FIEs) truly instructional roadmaps using free Curriculum-Based Measurement (CBM) and Curriculum-Based Assessment (CBA) tools. Participants will explore the vision behind CBM as a technology for tracking growth and how it differs from CBA’s diagnostic focus on automaticity of the basic skills. This session will show how informal measures can be used to write meaningful impact statements that directly inform instruction. Leave with practical strategies, free resources, and a clearer understanding of how to link data from FIEs to actionable instructional planning.
Presenter: Mahnaz Pater-Rov 
Mahnaz Pater-Rov is a Ph.D. student at Texas Women’s University and has been in education for over 25 years with 19 years of experience as an Educational Diagnostician. She mentors diagnosticians and collaborates with leaders of dyslexia programs. She has an interest in evidence-based assessment, data based decision making, and implementation science of CBM. In an attempt to support independent research, she channeled this interest into hosting several interviews with well-regarded researchers in the field on a platform called Clubhouse, and a related podcast. Over the last three years she’s gathered almost 2,000 followers on the Clubhouse app and several hundred others who listen to the podcast. The listeners generally consist of both diagnosticians and providers of dyslexia. Her dissemination work has been recognized by the Institute of Educational Sciences and the Texas Education Agency Special Education Department.
Wednesday, 3/11/2026
Title: Turning Data Into Support: Executive Function in Action
Executive Function (EF) skills play a central role in learning, organization, and self-management; when these skills are still developing, students may show variability in task completion or frustration with complex demands. This session offers tangible strategies to use patterns of EF assessment to create focused classroom strategies that leverage student strengths. Participants will learn effective strategies that enhance learning, self-management, and independence in school and community settings.
Presenter: Joanna Abramo, Ed.D., BCC, SHRM-CP
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Joanna Abramo, Ed.D., has spent close to 20 years in the field of education. She earned a Doctorate of Education in Educational Leadership from St. Peter’s University, holds a Master’s degree in Childhood Special Education, and a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology, both from Fordham University. Over the course of her career, Dr. Abramo held various positions throughout New Jersey in the area of special education, working with students from PreK to age 21. Beginning her career as a classroom teacher, she later worked in various leadership roles, including a special education instructional coach, and district-level Supervisor of Special Education. She currently is a faculty member in the College of Education at Kean University. Through her work with Abramo Advising, she trains educators, pre-service teachers, and professionals throughout the tri-state area. As a Board Certified Coach (BCC), she works with clients on academic and career coaching, specializing in executive functions, ADHD, and neurodivergent individuals. She is an active member of Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (CHADD), National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), Council for Exceptional Children (CEC), and the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).
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